Automatic for the City

Chapter 1Cars as Makers and Destroyers of Space

The cities will be part of the country; I shall live 30 miles from my office in one direction, under a pine tree; my secretary will live 30 miles away from it too, in the other direction, under another pine tree. We shall both have our own car. We shall use up tires, wear out road surfaces and gears, consume oil and gasoline. All of which will necessitate a great deal of work… enough for all.

Le Corbusier, The Radiant City, 1933

Transport innovations have always structured the making of cities but never to the extent brought about first by trains and later by cars. This is particularly evident in analysing the evolution of Western cities from approximately the mid-19th century to today.